Process for treating rolling oils



June 4, 1946. R. P. DUNMIRE ETAL 2,401,340

PROCESS FOR TREATING ROLLING OILS Filed June 4. 1942 INVENTOR.

Patented June 4, 1946 PROCESS FOR TREATING ROLLING OILS Russell P. Dunmire and .lames A. Camelford,

Cleveland, Ohio, assignors, by mesne assignments, to Buckeye Laboratories Corporation, Cleveland, Ghio, a corporation of Ohio Application June 4, 1942, Serial No. 445,818

Our invention is directed to the process for treating, purifying, and 1re-refining fatty substances of the class consisting of oils and waxes and preferably vegetable substances of the class consisting of oils and waxes and more particularly to palmoil used in steel mills for cold rolling of steel strips and in the reduction of steel strips.

in the cold rolling of steel, streams of oil such, for example, as palmoil, are directed on the steel strips together with large volumes of cooling water. The used oil, together with the water, is then drained into a collection system comprising basins tanks located in the basement of mill where separation occurs and the palmcil forms a sludge containing a large percentage of water. The material which is treated is this emulsion or sludge.

The sludge may contain many small solid particles such as steel chips, solid carbonaceous mattei', sand and other materials which may be readremoved by screening or by other suitable Besides the solid particles, the sludge contains soluble metallo-organic contaminants i e. relatively low molecular weight and soluble metallo-organic contaminants of a relatively high molecular weight and the polymers thereof. The contaminants of the low molecular weight may comprise acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, and valerie acid and their esters and metallic salts of these acids and of their isomers. The contaminants of the relatively high molecular weight may comprise compounds of the type which may be represented generically by the formula omronmoH--fonronmcocon,

endormi.CH=OH.(CH2)1.COooH @forerunner-CH.(onineoo H2 F? CH3.(enit.ccnrcrmtcooon2 CH3.(OH2)7.CH=CH. OH2)1.COoCH In addition to the above mentioned contaminants, the used or contaminated oil may contain the iron or metallic soaps of the normally occurring fatty acids in the palmoil and the condensation products of the unsaturated fatty acids and of their glycerides.

An object of our invention is the process of recovering and purifying the oil for recurrent use in the mills.

Another object of our invention is the process of recovering the water which is separated from the oil and ltering the separated water to free 17 Claims. (Cl. 260-412.5)

the same of impurities entrained therein for further use in the mill.

Another object of our invention is the process of selectively transferring the new oil and the rerened oil to the mill with the re-rened oil predominating'in amount.

Another object of our invention is the process of utilizing 'a Vretort both as a pre-conditioning vessel and a re-rening vessel.

Another object of our invention is the process` of utilizing a retort as a pre-conditioning vessel to pre-condition the oil to be treated, Withdrawing a portion or the pre-conditioned oil from the retort and mixing same' with a solid adsorbent material to form a slurry, after which the slurry is returned to the retort and there mixed with the oil remaining in the retort.

Another object of our invention is the process of removing a portion of the pre-conditioned oil from the retort for mixing with a solid adsorbent material while the oil remains in a heated state.

Another object 'of our invention is the process of introducing steam in the retort to aid in the pre-conditioning of the oil.

Another object of our invention is to pre-condition the fatty substances prior to subjecting them to a re-rening process utilizing a combined action of adsorption and distillation.

Another object of our invention is to pre-condition the metallo-organic contaminants in the contaminated or used fatty substances before subjecting the contaminated or used fatty substances to a re-renin'g process utilizing a com.. bined action of adsorption and distillation.

Another object of our invention is to catalytically precipitate the metal portion of the metalloorganic contaminants in the form of oxides and hydroxides to render same readily adsorbable by the adsorption action in the re-rening process and to liberate the organic portion of the metalloorganic contaminants to render the volatile fractions thereof readily removable by the distillation action in the re-rening process,

Another object of our invention is to provide for pre-conditioning the contaminated or used fatty substances by a reagent of the class of oxidizing agents, such, for example, as salts of amphoteric oxides or hydroxides including potassium dichromate, sodium dimolybdate and sodium tungstate before subjecting the contaminated or used fatty substances to a re-rening process utilizing a combined action of adsorption and distillation.

Another object of our invention is to pre-condition both the relatively low molecular weight contaminants and the relatively high molecular weight contaminants and the polymers thereof before subjecting the contaminated or used fatty substances to a re-reflning process utilizing a combined action of adsorption and distillation.

Another object of our invention is directed to the process of re-rening a contaminated or used fatty substance by first subjecting same to a preconditioning operation and then finally subjecting the contaminated or used fatty substances to a process utilizing a combined action of adsorption and distillation.

Other objects and a fuller understanding of our invention may be had by referring to the following description and claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure l diagrammatically represents a system adapted to carry out the process of our invention, Figure l comprising the only view of the drawing.

With reference to the drawing, the rolling mill is designated by the reference character III and a supply of water and a quantity of oil are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metallo-organic contaminants. The water is caused to flow over and about the material being treated at the rolling mill by opening the valve I I. The oil is caused t flow over and about the material being treated and the rolling mill by opening the valve I3 and operating the pump I4 which delivers oil to the rolling mill from a mill supply oil tank I2.

.The water and oil mixture which is passed over and about the material being treated in the mill and the large rolls of the mill is collected in a large pit or sump indicated by the reference character I5, and that part of the oil which floats to the surface is skimmed off for recovery in accordance with the process of our invention. The water is discharged into a sewer or other disposal by opening the valve 52 and closing the valve 45. The water which is discharged from the pit I5 may be recovered for further use in the mill by closing the Valve 52 and opening the valve 45, whereupon the pump 43 forces the water through a filter 44 back upon the rolling mill for further use. The filter 44 frees the water from impurities entrained therein. The water which is discharged from the pit I5 contains a small amount of oil in a very finely divided state, in fact so fine as to be of colloidal size, so that when the water is circulated for re-use, the filter 44 removes this small amount of oil which is of a contaminated nature.

.The oil which is skimmed oif of the pit I5 is caused to flow to either one of two settling tanks 22 and 23, depending upon whether the Valve 2B or the valve 2| is open or closed. The oil which is skimmed off of the pit I5 is pumped to either one of the two settling tanks 22 or 23 by means of a pump I1 when the valves I6 and I9 are open and the valve I8 is closed. The valve I6 is positioned in advance of the pump I1 so that the oil may collect in the skimming pit I5 before pumping it into either one of the two settling tanks 22 or 23. In the case of an emergency, the oil may be discharged into a sewer or other disposal by opening the valve I8 and closing the valve I9.

The oil sludge which is delivered to the settling tanks 22 and 23 contains Water which is drained off from the tanks to the sewer as illustrated. The water may be drained from the settling tanks 22 and 23, respectively, by opening the valves 46 and 41. Before the valves 46 and 41 are opened to discharge the water to the sewer from the settling tanks, the oil sludge is heated and is permitted to remain in a quiet state to cause further separation between the oil and water. In the practice of our invention, the oil sludge in the heating tanks is heated above the melting point of the oil but below the boiling point of the water, and preferably in the range of degrees to 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

The oil which settles on top of the water in the settling tanks is transferred to a retort illustrated generally by the reference character 21. A pump 26 is arranged to pump the oil to the retort 21. When oil is being transferred from the settling tank 22 the valve 24 is open and when oil is being transferred from the settling tank 23 the valve 25 is open. The object of having two settling tanks is that one of the tanks may be in the process of being filled from the skimming pit I5 while the other tank may be employed to supply oil to the retort 21.

rThe retort 21 is equipped with a mechanical agitator 28 which may be suitably driven by the electric motor 29. 'Ihe retort is of a sealed construction and is arranged to be evacuated by a vacuum pump 49. A condenser 48 is supplied in advance of the vacuum pump 49 from which water and condensed volatiles may be discharged to the sewer. The retort is also arranged to be heated by any suitable means for the purpose of carrying out the process. To the contaminated or used oil in the retort 21 we add a reagent of the class of oxidizing agents which, upon reduction thereof, results in reduced products of an amphoteric nature. This class of oxidizing agents comprises, among others, potassium dichromate, sodium dimolybdate and sodium tungstate. The oxidizing agent may be referred to as a pre-conditioning agent and is supplied to a mixer 34. In commercial practice, we preferably employ potassium dichromate and it is supplied to the mixer 34 in an aqueous solution where it is heated to a Vtemperature preferably at about the boiling point of water. The aqueous solution of potassium dichromate or the pre-conditioning agent is transferred from the mixer 34 to the retort 21 by means of a pump 3B when the valve 35 is open. The water required for the preparation of the aqueous solution of the pre-conditioning agent may be supplied by opening the valve 31. The combined mixture of the pre-conditioning agent and the contaminated or used oil sludge in the retort 21 is mechanically mixed by the agitator 28, while under vacuum and while heat is applied to the retort. The pre-conditioning agent is added to the contaminated oil sludge in the retort in solution form in order to obtain intimate contact between the pre-conditioning agent and the contaminated or used oil sludge. The aqueous solution of the oxidizing agent is added to the oil sludge in the retort in order to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of a precipitate whereby the precipitate may be later filtered out. Heat is applied to the retort and a vacuum is maintained therein to dehydrate the mixture of the oil sludge and the aqueous solution of the preconditioning agent. We find in practice that the dehydrating process may be hastened by injecting steam into the mixture of the oil and the aqueous solution of the pre-conditioning agent. As illustrated in the drawing, steam may be introduced in the retort by opening the valve 35. The vacuum is maintained as high as possible although it may not be maintained in a perfect state since steam is being introduced into the retort. The higher that the Vacuum is maintained,

the neighborhood of 250 degrees?. and there maintained. In the practice of our invention, lower or higher temperatures maybe used because the-main object is to provide enough heat to take care Aof lthe latent heat of evaporation of the waterfcontained in the mixture. The concentration-of the pre-conditioning agent is not critical within Wide limits although we prefer to employ between l and 5% of the Vweight of the oil contained in the sludge. Any excess of solid oxidation agent present may be readily removed by filtration from. the anhydrousoil. The mechanical-action of the agitator 28 is preferably continued while the heating operation is carried 'out' toremove the water. The introduction or the steam to the retort is discontinued as the dehydration of the sludge approaches completion.

The pre-conditioning agent oxidizes the iron present in the ferrous form to the ferric form and' then catalytically promotes the precipitation of themetal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of oxides' and hydroxides to render same readily adsorbable by the adsorption action :in the re-rening process and the liberation of the organic portion of the metalloorganic contaminants to render the volatile fraction thereof readily removable by the distillation action in the re-rening process. The pre-condi tioning agent chemically conditions the relatively low molecular weight metalloeorganic contaminants by separating the metal portion thereof in the form of oxides and hydroxides to render same readily adsorbable by the adsorption action in the re-rening process and by releasing the organic portion thereof to render the same readily removable by the distillation action in the re-relining process and chemically conditions the relatively high molecular Weight metallo-organic contaminants and the polymers thereof by separating the metal portion thereof in the form of low molecular weight compounds to render same'readily adsorbable by the adsorption action in the re--rening process and by releasing the organic portion thereof to render the volatile fraction thereof readily removable by the distillation action in the re-rening process. The reaction between the pre-conditioning agent and the contaminated or used oil is best obtained with the use of steam and under vigorous agitation and under relatively high temperatures in the neighborhood of 250 degrees F. Under these conditions`good physical and chemical relationships exist between the pre-conditioning agent and the contaminated or used oil.

Up to the present point, the process so Vfar de,- scribed may be referred to as a pre-conditioning process after which the contaminated oil is now ready for a re-rening process utilizing a combined action of adsorption and distillation. The portion of the process which will now be described may be referred to as the re-rening process. In carrying out the re-reflning process, we add to the mixture of the pre-conditioning agent and the contaminated or used oil a supply of solid adsorbent material in the retort or sealed container'in the form of a slurry. K 1 Y The slurry is prepared by transferring the de` 6 l .v hydrated oil to the mixer 313Y by opening the valves" 3I and`33 and closing the valve 32 Only a por-A- tion'of the dehydrated `oil in the retort is trans`` ferred to the mixer 34 which is in the formv of a slurry mixer. The dehydrated oil is transferred to the mixer 34 while in a heated condition'. To this withdrawn dehydrated oil is added a solid adsorbent'material which is mixed with V.the oil to'form a slurry. The slurry is transferredtofj the retort by opening the Valve 35 4and operating" the pump 36. The amount of the solid adsrb' ent material may vary with the particular type of oil being Vtreated and the process should bef' carried out with a sufficient amount of 'solid vadsorbent material to effectively adsorb all of the" adsorbable material and impurities inV thecon'` y' taminated or used oil. The solid adsorbent ina-l terial may comprise bone char, carbon" black,V fullers earth, etc. v y I In the re-refining process the combined mix! y ture'of the pre-conditioning agent', .the contain#v inated 'oil and 'the adsorbent 'material' is vigor-' ously agitated by the mechanical 'agitator' 28`, under a high vacuum. The temperaturefmayf vary in a rangef'tvhichextends upto 'al 'v`alu'efat j substantially 400 'degrees Ffto driveef Athe `vo1a"' tile impurities and preferably the'ternper'a'ture may vary in a rangebetweenZO degrees tolllfi".l degrees Ff In'the case of palm'oil, wehavefound4` that treatment at temperatures in excess of ka value substantially at 400 degrees F. leads to disl coloration of the nal product Vand also reduces the yield because of the `decompositionof thel 'unl saturated acids and esters. At' temperaturesbeiowtne value substantially at 400` degrees F. 'the yield is good but as the temperature substantially exceeds the value at substantially 400 degrees Ff the yield'rapidly decreases rendering the proc! essluneconomic'al. The mechanical agitation or' stirring of the combined mixture of the precon V ditioning agent; the contaminated or used oil, and the adsorbent material'in the sealed container brings all of the constituents thereof in close" intimate physical contact and the adsorbent niaterial thereby adsorbs the substantially non-volatile impurities. The heating of the retort drives oi the volatile impurities by distillation. .The` final mass in the retort after the heating and stir-v ring is finished is then removed from the retort and filtered in the lter indicated by the refer# ence character 38. The material maybe transferrecl from the retort 21 to the lter by open-Y ing thevalves 3l and 32 and closing the valve 33. `A pump 50 is employed to transfer thematerial from the retort 2l to the filter 38. The filter 38 separates the adsorbent material and the adsorbed impurities from the oil being treated to recover the latter. The filter also re-l Vmoves any'solid precipitated particles.

The time of the agitation may vary from 15 minutes to one hour depending upon the temperature employed in the re-rening process, the amount of the adsorbent material employed and the degree to which the oil has been contaminated. The filtered oil is received by a re-rening oil tank 3S. The oil from the rerened oil tank 39 and the new oil in the new oil tank 42 are selectively transferred by means of a pump 53 to the mill supply oil tank I2 with the re-refined oil predominating in amount. The characteristics of the re-reiined oil are such that it may be readily mixed with the new oil Without undesirable effects.

Although we have described our invention with; A a certain degree of particularity, it is understood 7 that the present disclosure has been made only by Way of example and that numerous changes may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope ofthe invention as hereinafter claimed. Y

We claim as our invention:

1. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of water and a quantity of fatty oil are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge, the process of recovering and purifying the oil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the Water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, re-rening the separated oil sludge by mechanically mixing and agitating the separated oil sludge with a solid adsorbent material in a sealed container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities, heating the mixture of the oil sludge being treated and the solid adsorbent material in the sealed container under vacuum to distill off the Water and the low boiling point volatile impurities, and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil being treated by filtration to recover the latter for further use.

2. In the operation of rolling mills Where a supply of water and a quantity of fatty oil are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated Water and oil sludge,the process cf recovering and purifying the oil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the Water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the major portion of the oil sludge from the water, re-refining the separated oil sludge by mechanically mixing and agitating the separated oil sludge with a solid adsorbent material in a sealed container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities, heating the mixture of the oil sludge being treated and the solid adsorbent material in the sealed container under vacuum to distill off the Water and the low boiling point Volatile impurities, separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil being treated by filtration to recover the latter for further use, and filtering the separated Water to free the same of impurities entrained therein.

3. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of Water and a quantity of palmoil are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and palmoil sludge including soluble metallo-organic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the palmoil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the Water and the palmoil sludge from the mill, separating the palmoil sludge from the water, preconditioning the palmoil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof to dehydrate same and to precipitate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of oxides and hydroxides, re-rening the preconditioned palmoil by mechanically mixing and agitating the pre-conditioned palmoil with a solid adsorbent material in a sealed container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities and the precipitated oxides and hydroxides, heating the mixture of the pre-conditioned palmoil and the solid adsorbent material in the sealed container under vacuum to distill oi the low boiling point lliv volatile impurities` and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the palmoil by filtration to recover the latterfor further use.

4. In the operation of rolling mills where a. supply of Water and a quantity of palmoil are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contam- N inated Water and palmoil sludge including solu- "ble metallo-organic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the palmoil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the Water and the palmoil sludge from the mill, separating the palmoil sludge from the Water, pre-conditioning the palmoil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organo contaminants in the form of a precipitate, rerefining the pre-conditioned palmoil by mixing the pre-conditioned palmoil with a solid adsorbent material in a heated container under vacuum to adsorb the high boiling point impurities and drive off the low boiling point volatile impurities, and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the palmoil by filtration to recover the latter for further use.

5. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of Water and a quantity of fatty oil are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metalloorganic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the oil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, pre-conditioning the oil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of a precipitate, re-refining the pre-conditioned oil by mixing the pre-conditioned oil with a solid adsorbent material in a heated container under vacuum to adsorb the high boiling point impurities and drive off the low boiling point volatile impurities, and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil by filtration to recover the latter for further use.

6. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of water and a quantity of fatty oil are caused to owover ,and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metallo-organic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the oil and the water for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating lthe oil sludge from the Water, pre-conditioning the oil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminantsin the form of a precipitate, re-rening the pre-conditioned oil by mixing the pre-conditioned oil with a solid adsorbent material in a heated container under vacuum to adsorb the high boiling point impurities and drive off the low boiling point volatile impurities, separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil byltration to recover the latter for further use, ltering the separated Water to free the same of impurities entrained therein, and returning the purified Water to the mill for recurrent use.

7. In the operation of rolling mills Where a supply of .Water and a quantity of palmoil are caused to flow over and about the material beingv treated in the mill and producing a contaminated container under vacuum to dehydrate the palm-y oil sludge and to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of a precipitate, removing a portion of the dehydrated mixture from the sealed container and mixing the removed portion with a solid adsorbent material to produce a slurry, transferring the slurry to the sealed container and mixing same with the dehydrated mixture remaining in the sealed container to adsorb the highboiling point impurities, heating the combined mixture in the sealed container under vacuum to distill 01T the low boiling point-volatile impuritiesy and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the palmoil by filtration to recover the latter for further use.

8. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of water and a quantity of palmoil are caused to ovv over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and palmoil sludge including soluble metalloorganic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the palmoil and the Water for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the water and the palmoil sludge from the mill, separating the palmoil sludge from the water, pre-conditioning the palmoil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof to separate the metal portion ofthe metallo-organic contaminants inthe form of a precipitate, rerefning the pre-conditioned palmoil by Ymixing the pre-conditioned palmoil With a solid adsorbent material in a heated container under vacuum to adsorb the high boiling point impurities and drive off the low boiling point volatile impurities, separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the palmoil by filtration to recover the latter for further use, filtering the separated Water to free the same of impurities entrained therein, and returning the purified Water to the mill for recurrent use.

9. In the operation of rolling mills Where a supply of Water and a quantity of palmoil are caused to ow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated Water and palmoil sludge including soluble metallo-organic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the palmoil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the water and the palmoil sludge from the mill, separating the palmoil sludge from the Water, pre-conditioning the palmoil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of a precipitate, removing a portion of the pre-conditioned mixture from the sealed container and mixing the removed portion with a solid adsorbent material to produce a slurry, transferringr the slurry to the sealed container and mixing same with the pre-conditioned mixture remaining in the sealed container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities, heating the combined mixture in the sealed container under vacuum to distill off the low boiling point 10 volatile impurities,- and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the 4palrnoil by ltration to recover the latter for further use.

10. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of water and a quantity of fatty oil from a mill supply tank are caused to ilow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated Water and oil sludge, the process of selectively supplying oil to the mill supply tank comprising the steps of collecting the Water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the Water, re-rening the separated oil sludge by mixing the separated oil sludge with a solid adsorbent material in a sealed container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities, heating the mixture of the oil sludge and the solid adsorbent material in the sealed container under vacuum to distill off the water and the low boiling point volatile impurities, separating-the adsorbent' material and the impurities from the oil by filtration to recover the latter for further use, transferring the filtered oil to the second reservoir, and selectively transferring the new oil and the re-rened oil to the mill supply tank with the re-refined oil predominating in amount.

1l. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of Water and a quantity of fatty oill from a mill supply tank are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a Ycontaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metallo-organic contaminants, the process of selectively supplying oil to the mill supply tank comprising the steps of collecting the Water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, pre-conditioning the oil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in -amphoteric material upon reduction thereof to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of a precipitate, rerefining the pre-conditioned oil sludge-by-mixing the preconditioned oil sludge with a solid adsorbent material in a sealed container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities, heating the mixture of the oil sludge andthe solid adsorbent material in the sealed container under vacuum to distill off the water and the low boiling point volatile impurities, separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil by filtra- -tion to recover the latter for further use, transferring the filtered oil to the second reservoir, and selectively transferring the new oil and the re-rened oil to the mill supply tank with the re-rened oil predominating in amount.

12. In the operation of rolling mills Where a supply of water and a quantity of fatty oil from a mill supply tank are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metallo-organic contaminants, the process of selectively supplying oil to the mill supply tank comprising the steps of collecting the water and the cil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, pre-conditioning the oil Isludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof action by introducing steam in the mixture. re-rening the pre-conditioned oil sludge by mixing the pre-conditioned oil sludge with a solid adsorbent material in a sealed container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities, heating the mixture of the oil sludge and the solid adsorbent material in the sealed container under vacuum to distill off the Water and the low boiling point volatile impurities, separating the adsorbent materia1 and the impurities from the oil by filtration to recover the latter for further use, transferring the filtered oil to the second reservoir, and selectively transferring the new oil and the re-rened oil to the mill supply tank With the re-rened oil predominating in amount.

13. In the operation of rolling mills Where a supply of Water and a quantity of fatty oil from a mill supply tank are caused to flow over and about the material -being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metallo-organic contaminants, the process of selectively supplying oil to the mill supply tank comprising the steps of collecting the water and the oil 'sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, mixing the oil sludge with an aqueous solution of potassium dichromate in a sealed container, heating the said mixture in the sealed container under vacuum to dehydrate the oil sludge and to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of a precipitate, aiding the dehydrating action by introducing steam into the mixture, removing a portion of the dehydrated mixture from ,the sealed container While hot and mixing the removed portion with a solid adsorbent material to produce a slurry, transferring the slurry to the sealed container and mixing same with the dehydrated mixture remaining in the sealed' container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities, heating the combined mixture in the sealed container under vacuum to distill off the low boiling point volatile impurities, separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil by filtration to recover` the latter for further use, transferring the lteredoil to the seeond reservoir, and selectively transferring the new oil and the re-rened oil to the mill supply tank with the re-rened oil predominating in amount.

14. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of Water and a quantity of fatty oil are causedA to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metalloorganic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the oil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the Water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, pre-conditioning the oil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof with a salt of an amphoteric oxide or hydroxide in a sealed container to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of a precipitate, continuing the pre-conditioning by heating the mixture of the oil sludge and the salt under vacuum to dehydrate the mixture, aiding the dehydrating action by introducing steamin the mixture, re-rening the pre-conditioned oil by mixing the pre-conditioned oil with a solid adsorbent material in a heated container under Vacuum to adsorb the high boiling point impurities and drive oi the low boiling point volatile impurities, and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil by filtration to recover the latter for further use.

l5. In the operation of rolling mills Where a supply ofwater and a quantity of fatty oil are caused to ow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metalloorganic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the oil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, pre-conditioning the oil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof by introducing an oxidizing agent comprising a salt of an amphoteric oxide or hydroxide and by heating the mixture under vacuum to separate the metal portion of the metalloorganic contaminants in the form `of a precipitate, re-rening the pre-conditioned oil by mixing the pre-conditioned oil with a solid adsorbent material in a heated container under vacuum to adsorb the high boiling point impurities and drive off the low boiling point volatile impurities, and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil by filtration to recover the latter for further use.

16. In the operation of rolling mills where a supply of water and a quantity of palmoil are caused to flow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metalloorganic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the oil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the Water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, pre-conditioning the oil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof by introducing an oxidizing agent comprising a Isalt of an amphoteric oxide or hydroxide and by heating the mixture under vacuum to separate the metal portion of the metallo- Yorganic contaminants in the form of a precipito adsorb the high boiling point impurities and drive oi the low boiling point volatile impurities, and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil by filtration to recover the latter for further use.

17. In 'the operation of rolling mills where a supply of water and a quantity of fatty oil are caused to ow over and about the material being treated in the mill and producing a contaminated water and oil sludge including soluble metalloorganic contaminants, the process of recovering and purifying the oil for recurrent use in the mill comprising the steps of collecting the water and the oil sludge from the mill, separating the oil sludge from the water, pre-conditioning the oil sludge by introducing an oxidizing agent which results in amphoteric material upon reduction thereof with an oxidizing agent comprising a salt of an amphoteric oxide or hydroxide in a sealed container` to separate the metal portion of the metallo-organic contaminants in the form of a precipitate, continuing the pre-conditioning by heating the mixture of the oil sludge and the salt under vacuum to dehydrate the mixture, re-rening the pre-conditioned oil by mixing the preconditioned oil With a 'solid adsorbent material in a heated container to adsorb the high boiling point impurities and drive off the low boiling point volatile impurities, and separating the adsorbent material and the impurities from the oil b y filtration to recover the latter for further use.

RUSSELL P. DUNMIRE. JAMES A. CAMELFORD. 

